Food Safety and Standards

Total Quality Management (TQM)

Quality is defined as “Degree of excellence in a Product or System” (FAO). The parameters of the quality are the grades, standards, and specifications laid down by expert bodies constituted by the government for the purpose, however, there may be varying and numerous qualities. According to the consumer the most important factors that determine the quality are price, color, and appeal in respect to both appearance and taste. Quality standards are descriptions of commodities in terms of net weight, accurate size, dimensions, content, and other characteristics.

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Intoduction to GM Foods and Trangenic Plants

Genetically modified (GM) organisms or genetically engineered (GE) organisms are basically plants, animals, or any organism whose DNA is being altered by using various genetic engineering techniques. On the other hand, Transgenic plants are plants having genes inserted into them derived from another species; the inserted genes can have origin from species within the same kingdom (plant to plant) or among different kingdoms (bacteria to plant). In many cases, the inserted DNA has to be modified slightly in order to be correctly and efficiently expressed in the host organism. Here, transgenic techniques have been utilized to furnish better agricultural products by making transgenic plants.

Genetically modified (GM) foods are transgenic plants that are used as a food, developed and marketing since there is some perceived advantage either to the producer or consumer of these foods. The GM crops currently in the market are primarily intended at an improved level of crop protection through the introduction of resistance against insects, plant pathogen, and increased resistance towards herbicide and other climatic states of affairs like salt and drought resistance. In some of the GM crops higher nutritional quality and yield have also been introduced. Numerous techniques are employed at the molecular level to integrate or create new resistance factors in a plant which can be summarized as follows:

1. Insect Resistance

Insect-pests are the major scourge of agriculture down the ages as important crops and their high-yielding genotypes are highly susceptible to insect pests. The introduction of chemical pesticides has brought about a significant change in pest management practices but. unfortunately, resulted in adverse effects on human health, other biological organisms, and the environment. Although complete elimination of pesticides is neither feasible nor advisable; it is imperative to reduce the consumption of pesticides in agriculture and the environment for practicing safe and sustainable farming. Effective alternatives are now available in the form of genetically engineered crops resistant to insect pests that can be integrated into agricultural ecosystems. Insect-resistant transgenes whether of plant, bacteria, or any other origin can be introduced into plants to augment the level of resistance. These genes are obtained from micro-organisms like the Bt gene from Bacillus thuringiensis, ipf (isopentyl transferase) gene from Agrobacterium tumefaciens, and Pht gene from Phtorabdus luminescence, which when introduced into some specific crop provide resistance against the specific insects.

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Introduction

Food loss refers to the ‘decrease in quantity or quality of food’ in subsequent stages of the food supply chain from initial production down to final household consumption. On the other. hand “Food waste is part of food loss and is refers to discarding or alternative (non-food) use of safe and nutritious for human consumption all along the entire food supply chain” (FAO). Food losses occurring at the end of the food chain (From retail to the final consumption) are rather called ‘food waste’, which relates to retailers’ and consumers’ behavior.

FOOD CONTAMINANT

A food contaminant is “Any biological or chemical agent, foreign matter and other substances not intentionally added to food which may compromise its safety and appropriateness” (FAO). Based on nature, contaminants can be categorized into three groups; biological, chemical, and physical.

FOOD AND FOOD SAFETY

Food means “Any substance whether processed, partially processed or unprocessed, which is intended for human consumption” (FSSAI). It includes primary food (except the produce in the hand of a farmer or a fisherman), genetically modified (GM) food or foods having genetic ingredients, infant food, packaged drinking water, alcoholic drink, and also the water used in food during manufacture or preparation. To ensure that food is not harmful for Humans consumption Food safety is required.